Aerosol bomb valve and guard



Oct. 29, 1957 W, E, DAVIS ET AL 2,811,289

AEROSOL BOMB VALVE AND GUARD Filed OCT.. 11, 1955 62 ff Flc; .4.

IlIllllllllllll/ll v M750/70,95 Mum/4 ,6. 170 W5 5MM/mv Mum/5 2,811,289AEROSOL BOMB VALVE AND GUARD William E. Davis and Blanton J. Whitm'ire,Kirkwood, Mo., assignors to Whitmire Research Laboratories, Inc., St.Louis, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Application (ictober 11, 1955,Serial No. 539,745

4 Claims. (Cl. Z22- 394) This invention relates to so-called aerosolbombs.

Aerosol bombs from which insecticides andthe like are dispensed arecommonly made in small sizes, the most common size being a bomb whichholds 1.2 ounces of liquid. These bombs have a total spray life of aboutfive to ten minutes. They have customarily been provided with a valvemounted in a pan-like closure which lits into the vopen top vof the bomband is sealed therein. The valve, has a hollow brass Vstem of smalldiameter projecting Vout of the closure and a plastic knob mounted onthe stem and equipped with a small nozzle. The contents of Vthe can arereleased by pushing down on the top of the knob, which depresses thestern and permits the liquid `to be released through the stem, into theinterior of the knob and out through the nozzle.

These valves have worked fairly satisfactorily with the small bombs. Thebrief duration of the spray period has made theproblem of therefrigerating yetfect `of Vtheexpansion of the liquid from the nozzleofthe valve vof'littlepractical concern. The valve knob has beendepressed for only a short length of time, s o that, while it isuncomfortable, holding the valve knob down has not beenV a seriousproblem. Also the lightness of the bombs 'and their short working life`has minimized the Aproblem fof damage to the valve stem and theinternal workings of the valve. i f

' It Yhas been considered unfeasible to uselt'hecomm'on `conimerciallight-weight valve with large heavyiwalled tanks, such, for example as athree pound bomb or tank which may have a spray life of thirtytoforty-:iive lininutes. YThis View Awas prompted by severalconsiderations.

YThe light-gauge metal closure was :thought `to be incompatible withtherelatively-heavy wall ofthe container.

(The V:thin stem projecting from the valve was considered A't'ooelightand easily damaged to withstand Ithe heavier, rougher and longer use towhich suchlarge rbombs are States Patent subjected in the course ofbeing exhausted; and the danger Y `of -frostbite to the nger pushingdown onl theknobjof vthe light-weight valve, when the spray period 'isprolonged, is serious. In addition, it is vtiringto `hold down the smallknob for an extended period of'tirne. Y, Y

-As a result of this thinkingin the trade, heavy, large, expensive,screw-on type valves have been used iwith :large "sizedbombaAccordingly, one of the objectsofjthis invention fis to `provide adevice vby means of which fa commonP commer- Yaerosol bomb.

Another object is to fprovide a device which may be used in connectionwith a common commercial lightweight -valve on any sized aerosol bomb,which vdevice ccimpanying drawing.

In accordance Ywith this invention, generuystateti, a

'ciallig'hweight valve can successfully be -used in fa large` `protectslthe valve'against damage, protectsthe usercfthe opening into a -nozzle34.

2,811,289 Patented Oct. 279,

2 p d evice is provided with legs which fit slideablybut snugly againstthe side wall of the cupped closure of a lightweight aerosol valve. TheconstructionI of the legs is such that the device protects the valvestem from injury and prevents undue side-thrust against the valve stemduring use. The device includes a part, supported by the legs, whichprevents the finger of the user-from being frostbitten, by keeping thefinger out of the stream `of spray immediately as -it leavesthe nozzle,and a partfforrni-ng a broad bearing surface for the linger of the-user. A clamping part of the device holds the valveknob againstinordinate sideways movement or cocking and keeps the spray nozzleproperly oriented.

The device is referred to hereafter as a guard.V It is to be understood,however, that the term guardv as used in describing the device is notused in the limited sense 'that the term might imply. The device of thisinvention serves not only to guard the stem against injury and vthelinger of the user against frostbite, but as a guide forthe knob, aplatform for the linger and therefore, -in a sense, 'as a controldevice, as an ornament, and as a means vfo quickly indicating theorientation of the nozzle. In the drawing, Figure 1 is a plan view of aheavy-walled aerosol bomb provided with a light-weight laerosol valveequipped with a guard constructed in accordanceV with one `en ibodimentof this invention;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary View in -front elevation of the containershowing the valve equipped with the guard shown in Figure 1;v n

Figure 3 'is a'fragmentary view in side `elevation ofthe container,valve and guardshown in Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along the line 4-4 ofFigure l;

Figure 5 is a view in perspective of the guardg`shown inl Figures lthrough 4; and

Figure -6 is a view in perspective of the guard shown *in `Figure 5 ininverted position. I

AReferring'now to the drawing for anillustrative etnbodimentof thisinvention, reference numeral "1 indicates an aerosol bomb which, in theembodiment shown, Iisof a large (e. g., three pound) size, as indicatedby theY thickness lof its wall 2v as shown in Figure 4. The 'bomb 1 hasan opening 3 in its upper end, defined byg-a llip A light-weight valve10 is seated in the opening 3. The valve 10 has a skirt 11 forming apan-shaped closure v'for the bomb, with a rim 12 crimped over the lip 44ofthe container 2 and an outwardly Haring annular bulge 14 around theinside and immediately below thelip 4 -so vas to seal the closure 11 inthe opening 3. The bottom Y'of the closure 11 is drawn upwardly to forman inverted'cup 16 integral with the bottom. The cup 16 has a hole inits inverted bottom through which a stem 20 extends. The

stem 20 is hollow and is usually made of brass. The c up 16 has anannular knurl 18 which serves to secure a valve housing 21 within thecup. A gasket 22 held againstthe inverted bottom of the cup by thehousing 21 vis Iadafed to seal an orifice in the wall of the stem 20when ,the stem lis in its uppermost position, and to 'be bent downwardlyby a sloping shoulder 23 on 'the stem 20when the 'valve stem'isdepressed. The stem is biased ltoward 'anupward position by a spring 24.

A'knob or button 30 is 'mounted onthe upper 'end of the stem 20. Theknob 30 has a verticalpassagefconnecting with the interior o f thehollow stem 20, and 'a horizontal passage connecting with the verticalpassage, and

The valve which has been described is a common commercial light-weightaerosol valve and 'itrsrgconstructiom .pers e, d oesjnot forma part ofthis invention.

`It`canbe seenthat the stem 20, which'in practice lhas an'outsidediameterofonly aboutone-eig'hth 'of an inh pointing, and to inhibit thetendency to drape the operators finger over the nozzle, the top surfaceof the knob Vhas been cut at anangle sloping downwardly away from thenozzle. This has made the knob more diflicult to push down and hastended to push the valve stem forward. In the illustrative embodiment ofthis invention shown in the drawing, a guard S0 is provided. The guard50,

in this embodiment, is made of a single blank of metal. The guard 50 hasthree legs, a back leg 52 and two front legs 53. The legs 52 and 53carry a platform 55. The platform 55 is made up of a rear section 56, acenter section 57 and a front section 5S, A pair of clamps 60 dependfrom the center section 57. A beak 62 projects from the forward edge ofthe front section 58.

The front legs 53 are integral with and connected to opposite sides ofthe front section S8 so as to leave a clear space between them overwhich the beak 62 projects. The back leg S2 is integral with andconnected to the center of the rearward edge of the back -section 56.The legs 52 and 53 are curved transversely on a radius substantially thesame as the radius of the inside surface of the side Walls of theclosure 11.

, The legs are so spaced with respect to oneanother ,that they slideablybut snugly engage the inside surface of the side wallof the closure 11.The legs are of substantially the same length as the distance from theupper side of the bottom of the closure 11 to the top-most point of theknob 30 when the knob is in its fully depressed position.

The clamps 60 are integral with and connected to opposite sides of thecenter section 57. They are curved on Va radius substantially the sameas the radius of the outside surface of the knob 30, and are so spacedas snugly to engage the knob 30. They are so aligned that the spacebetween them is centered with respect to the space between the frontlegs 53. The guard St) can be installed either by positioning itdirectly over a valve upon which the knob has already been mounted andpushing the guard down so that the clamps 60 embrace the sides of theknob with the nozzle 34 pointing through the space between the clamps 60toward the opening between the legs 53, i. e., in the directionindicated by the beak 62; or the knob can be demounted from the stern20, pushed into position between the clamps 60, with its nozzle pointingin the direction of the beak 62, and the guard and knob pushed down overthe stem. ln either event, the legs S2 and S3 slideably engage the sidewall of the closure 11.

In use, it is only necessary to push down on the relatively broad areaof the platform 55 to depress the knob and stem. The front section 58and the beak 62 positively and invariably prevent the finger of the userfrom getting into the stream of spray immediately as it issues from thenozzle, and therefore effectively prevent frostbite. The broad surfaceof the platform 55 provides a comfortable and effective bearing surfacefor the linger.

The legs 52 and 53 are close enough to'the bottom of the closure 11 sothat the stem 20 cannot be bent to the point at which damage can be doneto it or to the internal workings of the valve. There is a certainamount of play allowed the stem by virtue of the spring and flexiblegasket within the valve housing so that the legs 52 and 53 are entirelyeffective. It `can be seen also that as the valve stem is depressed, thelegs approach the bottom of the closure so that if, in use, there is atendency to exert aside thrust on the valve stem, that tendency iscompletely overcome as the legs reach the bottom, A

straight side thrust, as from a blow in handling, will be taken by thelegs.

The beak 62 performs three functions. It extend-s the front section ofthe platform, it serves to remind the user, because of its sharp point,to keep his finger back, and it indicates the direction in which thespray will issue.

The clamps 60 not only serve to keep the knob 30 centered and preventsideways displacement of theknob, but ensure that the downward forceexerted by the finger does not, as the beveled top of the knob tends to,cock the knob and valve stem forward. The clamps 60 also ensure that thenozzle is properly oriented and maintained in its proper orientationwith respect to the front legs 53.

It has been found in practice that when the guard of this invention isused, heavy-walled three pound bombs can be equipped with ordinarylight-weight valves, and the entire contents discharged under the sameconditions of rough handling and use as the elaborate and heavy valvesheretofore-commonly employed, with no diiiiculty whatsoever. f

Numerous variations in the details of construction of the guard of thisinvention, within the scope of the appended claims, will occur to thoseskilled in the art in the light of the foregoing disclosure.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired to besecured by Letters Patent is:

l. A valve guard on a pressure type containery having a valve with askirt providing a pan-shaped closure for the container, said closurehaving a bottom and a side Wall with an exposed inner surface above saidbottom, said valve having a vertically depressible hollow stemprojecting above said bottom and a knob mounted on the upper end of saidstem and carrying a nozzle, said guard comprising legs slideablyengaging the inner surface of the side wall ofthe closure for axialmovement with respect to the container, said legs being substantially aslong as the distance from the top of said knob to the bottom of saidyclosure when the stem is fully depressed and said legs being spacedapart todene an open space between them; a platform carried by saidlegs, said platform having a central section, and a clamp depending fromsaid central section and embracing said knob, said clamp having anopening into which the nozzle of the knob extends, said clamp openingbeing aligned with the space between the legs, said platform extendingabove and beyond said knob and said nozzle.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein the platform of the guard isprovided with a pointed beak extending above the space between the legsand in a direction away from the nozzle of the knob. Y

3. The combination of claim l wherein the platform has a front sectionto opposite sides of which two front legs are integrally connected, acenter section, to opposite sides of which a pair of clamping membersforming the clamp are integrally connected, and a back section to whicha back leg is integrally connected, said two front legs being spaced todefine the opening with which the clamps opening is aligned.

4. A heavy-walled cylindrical aerosol bomb having a valve with` a skirtprovidingva pan-shaped closure for an opening in the upper end of saidbomb, said closure being constructed of light gauge metal as comparedwith the wall of the bomb, said closure having a bottom and asidey wallhaving an exposed insidej surface above said bottom, said valve having avertically depressible hollow stem and a knob mounted on said'stem andcarrying a nozzle, and a guard for said valve, said guard comprisinglegs slideably engaging the inner surface of the'side wall of theclosure for axial movement with respect to the bomb, said legs beingsubstantially as long as the distance from the top of said knob to thebottom of said closure when the stem is ully depressed and spaced apartto define an open space between them; a

platform carried by said legs, and a clamp depending from a centralseotion of said platform and embracing said knob, said clamp having anopening into which the nozzle of the knob extends, said opening beingaligned with the space between the legs, said platform extending aboveand beyond said knob and said nozzle.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

